The Great Lakes Loons of the Class-A Midwest League traveled to Lansing for a four-game set with the Lugnuts beginning on Monday, August 15. With just 21 games to play in the 2016 schedule the Loons trailed the Lugnuts by four and one-half games in the chase for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Division of the league. On the season the Great Lakes squad had won seven of their 15 match-ups with Lansing.

With a young arm starting for the Loons in each of the four games, and with each starter most likely limited to five innings against the Lugnuts, relief pitching would be stretched to the limit in the series.

On Monday, the Loons came away with a 7-1 win in their first game in the all-important series. The offense came alive with 11 hits with two each by Omar Estevez, Logan Landon, Brendon Davis and Saige Jenco.

Nineteen-year-old right-hander Imani Abdullah held the Lugnuts to two hits and one run over five innings. He was followed by right-handers Andrew Istler and Ivan Vieitez who pitched a combined four innings giving up no runs on four hits while striking out three.

The Loons returned to action on Tuesday, August 16 buoyed by their first game success in Lansing. Twenty-year-old Cuban sensation, Yadier Alvarez, pitched his five innings and earned a 12-0 win as he held the Lugnuts hitless while striking out eight. Alvarez hit 100 mph on the radar gun on more than one occasion. The Loons relief corps showed up to play once again with Luis De Paula, Mitchell White and Shea Spitzbarth finishing up the final four innings while allowing no runs, three hits, walking two and striking out an impressive seven.

The Loons tied their season high of 18 hits in Tuesday 12-0 pounding of the Lansing Lugnuts.
(Photo credit – Heather Khalifa)

The Loons tied their season high for most hits in a game with 18 and also tied their largest margin of victory on the season with their 12 runs. Great Lakes had at least one hit in every inning and four Loons had three-hit nights – Brendon Davis, Ibandel Isabel, Saige Jenco, Logan Landon. This win also gave Great Lakes their first four game win streak of the season.

Jordan Sheffield started the third game of the series with the Lugnuts on Wednesday, August 17. The Dodgers third selection in the 2016 First-Year Player Draft pitched the first two innings giving up two runs on two hits with the damaging blow being a home run by Lugnuts first baseman Justin Atkinson.

However, as in the first two games, the Loons scored an early run in the first inning and then tied the game at two in the sixth inning. Once again the relief corps was outstanding. Ivan Vieitez, Dennis Santana, Dean Kremer and Tony Gonsolin pitched nine scoreless innings giving up but two hits and two walks and striking out 11. The score remained tied until the 11th inning, thanks to the performance by the Loons bullpen, which did not allow a hit after the sixth inning and retired 12 of Lansing’s final 13 batters in order.

Luke Raley led the offense with two ringing doubles off the wall and a home run in the sixth inning that cleared the right center field wall. The Loons finally secured their third consecutive win over the Lugnuts, on an RBI single by left-handed hitter Saige Jenco, that snapped a tie in the 11th inning as Great Lakes won their fifth game in a row with a well-earned 3-2 victory over Lansing at Cooley Law School Stadium.

The Loons took the field in Lansing for game four on Thursday night, trailing the Lugnuts by one and one-half games in the standings, with 19-year-old Leonardo Crawford on the mound making his third start for Great Lakes. Crawford pitched four innings of three-hit ball while giving up one run before giving way to the bullpen in the fifth inning.

By then the Loons had started quickly offensively once again and put up a two-spot in the second inning, missing the cycle in the inning by a home run. They scored again with three runs in the seventh inning, almost in little league fashion, on two singles, a double, a stolen base and three wild pitches.

Relievers Luis De Paula and Andrew Istler followed Crawford to the mound and pitched a total of five scoreless innings on two hits with two strikeouts. De Paula walked two of the first three batters he faced in the seventh inning but worked his way out of the jam and finished his first three-inning appearance of the season to give the Loons the 5-1 win and the series sweep.

During the series the Loons relief pitchers came through with 22 scoreless innings. Over the four games, with seven different relievers, they gave up only 11 hits while striking out 23 Lansing hitters.

Following the game, the Loons had little time to enjoy their sweep of the Lansing Lugnuts. They had to climb on a bus and drive over seven hours to Bowling Green, Kentucky to begin a three-game series with the second place Hot Rods on Friday at 7:35 pm ET.

Their bus ride most likely will be a little less tiring coming off the improbable sweep of Lansing and climbing within one-half game of the Lugnuts for a playoff berth.